NationStates Jolt Archive

Two years ago ((Game time))

It was the thousandth system searched in the archives, but it was perfect for their purposes. Five planets orbiting a G2 star, which had been named Mictlan, as had the system based around it. The first planet, Garm was slightly larger than earth, with a radius of 7,487 kilometres and a thin nitrogen atmosphere, orbiting at 97,974,664 kilometres

The second planet, Netu, was larger, 11,926 kilometres in radius orbiting out at 103,342,147 kilometres. A bromine soup made up most of the atmosphere, and great seas upon its surface. Netu would eventually become home to uranium mines and the occasional penal colony for the very worst offenders on its barren surface.

The third world, Duat was ideal for colonisation, orbiting at 140,523,463 kilometres and about 6.3 thousand kilometres in radius. The verdant nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere and liquid water on its surface made it so. There was life on Duat before the C’tan arrived, but it was mostly restricted to the seas. Large amounts of terraforming would be undertaken by the C’tan shortly after their arrival to change this and make it more suitable for human, and elven habitation. Most of the terrain was barren, however. It would be many years before the world was earth like, and would cost many, many fortunes. However, the atmosphere was breathable and there was liquid water, which was enough for the first while. Duat had a total volume of 1.047E+21 m³ and a total surface area of 4.988E+14 m² - 498,800,000 Km² - a little less than the Earth’s and a total mass of 5.833E+24 Kg – a hair higher than the Earth’s, leading to a slightly greater density 5,569 Kg/m³. The surface escape velocity of Duat was 11.1 Km/s

2,447,480,936 kilometres out was the forth planet, a small ball of gases twenty eight thousand clicks from it’s outer point to its core, This world was known as Mitnal was a great ball of almost pure hydrogen – useful for mining gases for fusion, though the C’tan didn’t use such things much, it would become a refuelling stop for the few C’tan allies. They’d probably permit any level of exploitation of Mitnal, it was relatively unimportant to them.

The last and greatest world of the Mictlan system was Xolotl, a vast gas giant, 98,821 Kilometres in radius, dwarfing even the mighty Jupiter. Xolotl orbited out at 2,574,302,854 clicks, mostly composed of nitrogen and hydrogen and with three major moons, barren rocks composed of various unremarkable ores.

Obviously moving an entire population to Duat would be a mammoth task, killing almost all other government spending for ((1 RL month)) and forcing a long term period of isolation, during which establishing communications with the C’tan would be nigh-impossible for those uninvolved with them.

The 'present'

Nilthien stepped out onto the soil – well, ferrocrete, it was a debarkation area after all – of this planet. It was rather new – her first trip here. She could already see the area scoped out for the new capital from the hectic debarkation area. Inwardly she considered the whole thing with a mix of giddy excitement and horror at the logistics of it. Essentially she’d been drafted into this programme as a logistics officer, which wasn’t surprising – the cost of this operation was bound to be utterly staggering, many, many trillions of credits.

Still – a new world, that was exciting in itself. From here she could see the glistening – unpolluted – seas. Even the air was fresher than it was on Earth. Though the rather large bulk of containers being unloaded did spoil the view a little. Already in the distance, she could see the area they’d cleared at the heart of the future city for the capitol buildings and palace. She wondered what in the name of sanity they’d do with all that space – a rather over grandiose palace in her opinion. Still – they weren’t short of space, and it’d cost a drop in the ocean next to all the expenditure on the move, so as long as it looked impressive, why should she care?

OOC: Those who are invited know who they are, if you’ve had significant interaction with me in the past, you’re probably on the list, all the people on the list frequent NS IRC. Otherwise, IC you may notice the leaving, but the destination is an utter secret, and even then, it’s of little interest to you. TG me or ask on IRC if you wish to be involved in some way.

Most of the work had been done now, and some artful destruction had been wreaked on the deserted earth territories, nothing of value was left behind and intact. The mountain fortress that had long served as Mephet’ran’s home was all that remained, and even that was stripped out, except for a strange hermit who remained in the deserted splendour, burning the furniture and dead wood from the forests outside.

He would basically remain there for one reason, to deal with anyone who wanted to make contact with the former inhabitant…

Doubtless in time some other, new nation would spring up to claim that territory in time, but for now it was deserted.

Wolf 1481, 19.98 light years from Earth

The star’s spectral class was ‘G8,’ but even so, it was featureless, there were no planets of significant interest there. Which was ideal.

Clustered around a large rogue object some hundred kilometres across, several necron harvest ships began cutting into its surface with their Gauss whips, flaying deep into its surface. They then began dropping large blocks into the hole, guiding them down with the same weapons they had used a moment ago, on a vastly lower power setting.

After several days, their work was completed. Destruct charges placed, and the more important mechanisms of the gate secured into position, as well as the titanic reactor. They were finally ready, and with a single ripple, a shimmering emerald surface appeared within the object, pulsing with strange energies.

They shot a scarab through the gateway, and waited patiently. The miniscule drone returned a minute later, intact. Then they passed a dog in a small capsule through the gateway, and finally, a human volunteer. Eventually, it was concluded that the portal was safe. The Tenth Gate of Varl it was named.

Undefended, it waited, until it would be needed to permit the young to visit the C’tan, who lie quiescent, beyond the gates of Varl.

“Come on man, this is insane…”

“What? Taking the job? The pay’s reasonable, and it comes with responsibilities…”

“You’re a Senator, James, come on…”

“Yeah, a senator, and I didn’t much want that job,” he replied, jamming more clothes into his bag, “I far preferred admiral.”

“Yes, the great and famed Admiral James Rale, so famed they appointed him to the senate, just to oversee me!” said General Banks, who still had her commission, though now it was more of a generalissimo type affair, as head of the semi-legal paramilitary/militia organisation known as the Peace Corps.

“That’s true enough, and you’ve been doing a fine job…” he said, impatiently taking an old and battered pistol from his drawer and checking the clip – seventeen bullets, quite the antique. He threw it into the bag, along with a much more modern kinetic-pistol, and zipped the thing up, throwing the bag over his shoulder, “… and you don’t need me to oversee you.”

“Yeah, well, captain’s a big step down from admiral…”

“Commodore, at least, that’s what my rank is going to be, a last tweak I did on the committee.”

“Well then, commodore, have you considered that even so, the Wolf Station isn’t likely to see much real action…”

“Admittedly no, not compared to what we used to see, with the fleet, but it’s still the frontier, short of getting reassed to Sol, I’m not seeing any more active and tempting posts…”

“It’s a trading outpost. You’ll be a glorified customs officer!”

“My mother was a customs officer you know…”

“Well, I didn’t mean it quite that way.”

“I know, but still, there’s no way you’ll convince me not to do this.”

=======================

This part of the outer reaches of the Mictlan system were impressive, even to the more jaded citizen, especially of interest was the vast Gate of Varl, not hidden against a rogue object like its cousin, it was here in all its ten kilometre wide glory. More impressive still was the space-station nearby, a vast six kilometre high construct, the top of which sported a vast ring full of transparent garden domes and near endless docking systems. The first thing that struck Rale when he looked out over his new command was the seeming crudity of many of the weapons… they weren’t necron, they looked like giant naval guns… Odd.

=======================

Rale arrived in command and took a seat in the command chair. He was a little surprised, and pleased by the fact that it wasn’t all automated like the necron ships – he’d had a tour of one of them once. Instead this was a hive of activity, it reminded him of his old life. There was in fact, no conscious AI onboard at all, instead a large conventional crew and some subconscious artificial intelligences, but no overarching supercomputer like most ships. It’d doubtless slow reaction time down, but he could live with that, it made him needed.

He leaned forward and looked at the display of the Varl gate eagerly, “Wolf One to Command, this is Commodore Rale requesting permission to transit the gate.”

“Understood, you’re number one in the queue, transit at will.”

“Lieutenant thrusters to full ahead.”

“Thrusters ahead full, aye sir,” the elf-woman replied, spreading her hands across several sliders and shifting them to their maximum settings. On the outside of the station, a multitude of engines began to shoot extremely high energy massed particles from pores on the ‘back’ of the station at something close to the speed of light, accelerating it toward the gate.

In probably the single largest transit the gate would ever undergo, the station passed through its shimmering green curtain and into the wolf system, its engines straining at full power to exceed the minimum escape velocity of the rogue object, straining its thrusters to the upmost, the station managed to pull it off, coasting out above the miniscule object, and taking up position nearby, in the same orbit helpfully, both gates had the same velocity around their stars, and the station had been constructed in such an orbit, and thus, its weak engines didn’t need to strain to keep pace with the rogue object.

Rale watched the helmsquendë finish correcting the station’s position with a little trace of awe, she was exceptionally talented, “Good work lieutenant…” She turned with a little smile, “Hlapuen sir.”

He smiled back at that, “Very good indeed. Communications, send to Command, we’re on station now, and we’ll be ready to take up duties in two hours.”

“That’ll probably be the cue for them to signal Taurenor and Menelmacar and tell them that they can… take up residence.”

“Probably,” agreed the helmsquendë he was speaking to a moment ago, “Not that I mind that,” she said with a smile, unsurprisingly, she welcomed more elves, and to be honest, Rale had to agree, he liked elves.